Electrocardiograph measurements ("ECG") are commonly made to provide information about a patient's heart performance. Typically a technician will place sensors on a patient's chest. The sensors are electrodes having an adhesive gel for adhering to the skin of the patient as well as for providing electrical conductivity. The technician then clips leads from an ECG monitor to a terminal on each of electrode pads. The technician will monitor voltage differential to provide a chart indicating the condition of the patient's heart.
It is important to place the electrode pads at fairly precise anatomical positions. These positions have been established so as to provide adequate comparisons with ECG measurements that have been taken across a wide variety of patients. However, varieties in patient size makes this placement a difficult task. Normally, six of the electrode pads must be positioned, then clipped to the leads. Furthermore, the technician has to be careful to clip the proper leads to the proper electrode pads.
Skill and care are required to be able to properly position the sensors for an ECG measurement. This become a more difficult task during emergencies. For example, ECG measurements made in an ambulance or with a portable ECG device at a field site are very informative. With time of the essence, it is a difficult task to properly and quickly place and connect the electrode pads.
Prior art patents show a variety of devices for facilitating ECG measurements. Generally these devices include some type of strip or harness with the electrodes being prewired to a connector terminal on an edge of the strip. Preconnecting the electrode pads to a connector terminal reduces the chances for a technician to switch the leads inadvertently. Also, some of the devices place the electrodes in the general vicinity of the desired anatomical position. However, because of the differences in patient size, a variety of sizes of these strips may need to be kept on hand. Some of the devices shown would appear to be expensive. For one reason or another, such prewired strips are not commonly used.